Digital Plan Making: a discussion paper

The problem

The New South Wales Government’s ePlanning initiative will help make planning more accessible and easier to understand. As part of this transition, the NSW Department of Environment and Planning will be moving away from the use of PDF maps to “digital mapping” as the legal map reference of Environmental Planning Instruments (EPIs).

Many stakeholders will be impacted by these changes, particularly local government. The department engaged Mercury Project Solutions to put together a discussion paper to support the community consultation process and give stakeholders something concrete to respond to.

Mercury’s contribution

Mercury’s Maurits van der Vlugt consulted widely with planners, industry and councils to develop the discussion paper: “Towards Digital Plan Making.” The paper explains the changes, the benefits they bring, the steps involved, and how the department will assist all stakeholders with the transition. It asks stakeholders to respond on how the changes should be implemented, and how to minimise disruption and maximise the benefits.

The paper was put online for one month and distributed widely as part of the consultation process.